The filing period for Nevadans running for local, state, and federal office is officially open.
According to one tally by The Nevada Independent, nearly 200 people have already announced intentions to run for office. And already we’ve seen some familiar names officially throw their proverbial hat into the ring. Attorney General Aaron Ford has already filed his paperwork to run against incumbent Republican Governor Joe Lombardo. Lieutenant Governor Stavros Anthony also turned in his candidacy paperwork, making his run for reelection official.
But for right now, what might be more important than who is running is who is not running — Nevada's sole Republican in Congress, northern Nevada's Rep. Mark Amodei.
KUNR Public Radio's Lucia Starbuck spoke to Amodei after he announced his decision last month.
"He said if he were to be elected again, he would spend his 70th birthday in Congress, and that was not something he wanted to do," said Starbuck. "He was pretty happy with his decision, and he said he's proud of the work he's done."
With no incumbent running, the race has suddenly become a lot more interesting, especially since most of the Republicans considered shoe-ins to replace Amodei have decided not to run. It's given many Democrats in northern Nevada hope they could win the seat in a so-called "blue-wave" election. The Nevada Independent's Washington, D.C. Correspondent, Mini Racker, told State of Nevada that national Democrats agree this could be the year they have a shot.
"It is a long shot, and Democrats know that," said Racker. "They're speaking pretty cautiously about it. I do think they believe it's probably their best chance in a good long time. But just because it's their best chance doesn't mean it won't be an uphill battle."
As for the issues, it appears the 2026 election will likely revolve around the economy and immigration. In that vein, KUNR's Starbuck said health care will also likely be top of mind for many voters.
"You have seen that health care costs, monthly premiums, double for some Nevadans who lost their subsidies under the Affordable Care Act," Starbuck said. "You have Medicaid cuts looming at the end of the year. I think health care is going to be a huge issue if people cannot afford it, and if people start to lose their health care insurance. I think that issue is not going away."
Racker says the focus in D.C. is on AI and its impact on the country.
"It's the top thing people have been talking about now for a couple of years, and you're going to see it start to affect a lot of economic issues, jobs, energy costs, that kind of thing. So I would expect that's going to start to play a role in this election."
Candidate filing ends March 13. The primary election is June 9. The general election is on November 3.
Lucia Starbuck, politics reporter, KUNR Public Radio; Mini Racker, Washington, D.C. correspondent, The Nevada Independent
